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Middlesex Citizens Voice Opposition to Adding More Wastewater Effluent To SSentinel.com Serving Middlesex County and adjacent areas of the Middle Peninsula and Northern Neck since 1896 Vol. 114, No. 43 Urbanna, Virginia 23175 • January 29, 2009 Two Sections • 75¢ Middlesex citizens voice opposition to adding more wastewater effl uent to Urbanna Creek Curt Linderman, water Comment permit manager for the Pied- mont Regional Offi ce of DEQ, said the Virginia Health deadline Department usually prefers pumping and hauling waste- is Feb. 6 water on a temporary basis for about one year. by Tom Chillemi Middlesex County has been pumping and hauling waste- During the January 21 water from the courthouse public hearing on a wastewater and county offi ces since June treatment plant proposed for 2003, said Middlesex County Saluda, citizens asked the State Administrator Charlie Culley. Water Control Board (SWCB) Culley said the drainfi eld to consider alternatives to that was installed [at the site of dumping treated wastewater the current courthouse parking into Urbanna Creek. lot] failed within 2.5 years of In 2011, new regulations being put into use. The county will require that nearly all of repaired it, but had to build a the nutrients phosphorus and parking lot over the drainfi eld nitrogen be removed from the when, under court order, it was effl uent of treatment plants— forced to build a new court- a diffi cult and expensive task. house adjacent to the existing Those two nutrients feed algae one. that bloom and block sunlight Several years ago voters from reaching underwater failed to approve a referendum grasses. When the algae die to build the new courthouse at they use oxygen to the detri- the site of old Rappahannock ment of aquatic life. Central Elementary School at Marian Agnew, president Cooks Corner. Voter referen- of the Center for Environ- dum approval is required by mental Strategy, said nutri- state law in order to move the ent removal is “very hard” to site of the courthouse, noted do at a reasonable cost, and a Culley. better alternative is reusing the Culley said the county offi ces water. “We have got to recycle Opponents who asked for alternatives to discharging treated wastewater into Urbanna Creek made their position known and court building currently our wastewater for what it is, a at last week’s public hearing on a proposed Saluda wastewater treatment plant. (Photo by Tom Chillemi) produce 3,000 to 4,000 gal- valuable resource . we need lons of wastewater per week. those nutrients on land.” Middlesex County’s waste- re-use) regulations,” said Hart. Plans call for building a of 85 homes; and possibly It costs 12 cents per gallon to Agnew asked the SWCB to water consultant, Roger Hart of “The county is spending extra 39,900 gallon-per-day (gpd) Christchurch School, which pump and haul, he said. deny the permit and that it be Malcolm Pirnie Inc., said the money to put in extra fi ltration wastewater treatment plant currently has its own wastewa- At 4,000 gallons per week, resubmitted as a re-use and county has considered re-using and enhanced disinfection to about a half-mile east of the ter treatment plant. the annual cost is about recycle facility. “This is a time treated wastewater on the pro- meet these regulations.” Middlesex Courthouse. It Pump and haul $25,000. of change and the State Water posed athletic complex fi elds However, if land application would serve the courthouse Buddy Wyker of Urbanna The county also considered Control Board needs to do at Middlesex High School. “If is used, during winter and wet and county offi ce buildings; said it would be cheaper to building a remote drainfi eld some major changing, and this anybody wants to re-use water weather the effl uent would still Middlesex High School, continue to pump and haul the on sites in Saluda, including permit is a very good place to we’ll be glad to let you have it, be discharged into the creek. which has a failing drain- wastewater until a better solu- start,” she said. because it will meet the (new (See related story, page A1.) fi eld; a proposed development tion is found. (See Sewage, page A3) Land application of wastewater puts nutrients to use by Tom Chillemi believes strongly, from many years of experience, that land Treated wastewater can be application is the most appro- applied to land as an alternative priate way to dispose of organic to discharging it into bodies of waste. The land application water. facility that serves Kilmer’s For more than 18 years, Point and Cedar Pointe subdivi- Kilmer’s Point and Cedar Pointe sions is built on Gill’s property subdivisions near Urbanna at Remlik, about three miles have used air, sunlight and land west of Urbanna. to treat their wastewater. It is “Land application is a proven sprayed on a 14-acre fi eld where and viable alternative to the remaining nutrients become fer- traditional disposal of effl u- tilizer for plants. ent through a pipe into nutri- The nutrients in treated waste- ent enriched waters, such as water “are only resources that Urbanna Creek,” Gill said. are out of place,” said Dan Gill, Middlesex County has an a former county supervisor who application pending before the has advocated land use applica- State Water Control Board on tion for more than 25 years. a proposed 39,900-gallon-per- In 2011, the state will require day wastewater treatment plant that the nutrients phosphorus for Saluda. As now proposed, and nitrogen be nearly elimi- the treated effl uent would fl ow nated in treated wastewater, a into Urbanna Creek. diffi cult and expensive job, said Opponents argue that Middlesex County wastewater Urbanna Creek does not Wastewater from Kilmer’s Point and Cedar Pointe subdivisions, located about three miles west of Urbanna, is aer- consultant Roger Hart. ated in the two smaller lagoons and stored in the larger pond until it is sprayed on a 14-acre grass fi eld. The grass Gill, a farmer, said he (See Wastewater, page A3) takes up the nutrients in the treated effl uent. (Photo by Mike Kucera) Bay Aging plans Mayor clarifi es statement on town code by Tom Chillemi statement she made during a Bob Calves and she said the laws,” read Taylor’s statement. Urbanna Town Council work town code is a “guideline.” “I apologize for this misunder- Urbanna Mayor Beatrice session on Jan. 16. At the work Since May 2008, Calves has standing and I want everyone to more apartments Taylor responded with a writ- session, Taylor was responding repeatedly claimed that the know that I will enforce all of ten response on Monday to a to a question by town resident town administrator and council the laws of this town. by Larry S. Chowning Supervisor Jack Miller said are not enforcing the town code “However, Mr. Calves and he was in favor of the project to protect Urbanna’s Historic others must recognize that I will The Middlesex County Board because in the past Bay Aging District. Council is divided enforce those laws based on of Supervisors approved a spe- has worked with the county to Dock expansion denied on what to do about perceived my interpretation and the legal cial exception permit on Jan. 20 make the current facility com- zoning violations. (See January advice rendered by the town to allow Bay Aging Apartments patible with the neighborhood. On Tuesday, Jan. 27, the Virginia Marine Resources 22 story at SSentinel.com). attorney,” continued Taylor. Middlesex Inc. to build a second After construction of the fi rst Commission (VMRC) denied a request by Potomac Town administrator Lewis “I respect Mr. Calves’ right to phase of dwellings at Port Town phase, there were issues con- Timber Investments LLC to expand the number of boat Filling read Taylor’s state- interpret the laws of this town Village on Old Virginia Street, cerning lighting, and efforts slips at the Urbanna Yachting Center Marina, located on ment to council and the audi- and to develop his conclusions. just outside of Urbanna. were made by Bay Aging to Watling Street at Urbanna Creek. The commission’s action ence during Monday’s monthly I expect Mr. Calves to respect The approval of the special make the lights less glaring. followed a public hearing. council meeting. Taylor was not my right to interpret the laws of exception will allow up to 30 Supervisor Kenneth W. Wil- Potomac Timber had sought an application to build 139 at the meeting because her hus- this town, even though he may multi-family dwellings to be liams said these homes for slips at the marina, which currently has 86 slips. band was in the hospital. disagree with that interpreta- built for elderly housing in lower-income elderly are much The previous owner had been granted a VMRC permit “I (Taylor) misunderstood tion. The fact that his interpreta- a General Business District. needed in Middlesex County. for 102 slips. That permit is still valid. Mr. Calves’ question in that tion differs from that of the town However, currently, Bay Aging “We have a large population of Potomac Timber is also attempting to build 14 condo- I thought he was questioning council and its mayor cannot be only has funding to build 12 elderly people and these homes miniums on the 1.4-acre parcel; however, that permit is whether I used certain portions interpreted as a failure on the units directly to the rear of the mired in a lawsuit in Middlesex Circuit Court. of the town code as guidance in part of this governing body to current dwellings.
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